Moral education and the psychology of moral discourse

Discourse has since Socratic times been regarded as core elements of a moral education that not only transfers moral knowledge but also hones moral skills and character. However, discourse may promote questionable phenomena like polarisation and could thereby give rise to conspiracy theories, hate c...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Heinzelmann, Nora (Author)
Format: Article (Journal)
Language:English
Published: 07 Feb 2025
In: Journal of moral education
Year: 2025, Pages: 1-17
ISSN:1465-3877
DOI:10.1080/03057240.2025.2453687
Online Access:Resolving-System, lizenzpflichtig, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1080/03057240.2025.2453687
Verlag, lizenzpflichtig, Volltext: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03057240.2025.2453687?scroll=top&needAccess=true
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Author Notes:Nora Heinzelmann
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Summary:Discourse has since Socratic times been regarded as core elements of a moral education that not only transfers moral knowledge but also hones moral skills and character. However, discourse may promote questionable phenomena like polarisation and could thereby give rise to conspiracy theories, hate crimes, and riots. Thus, discourse may undermine rather than promote moral character, moral goods, and moral skills. The present article draws on empirical findings on discourse to draw attention to potentially problematic features. Thus, if discourse is a core element of moral education, then it may raise challenges. For one thing, fake news and polarisation can negatively affect discourse, which may in turn challenge moral education. Fake news may prevent learners from acquiring moral goods like knowledge from testimony of instructors or peers. Polarisation can hamper the cultivation of moral virtues like open-mindedness. The paper also provides suggestions for how these challenges can be addressed.
Item Description:Gesehen am 10.02.2025
Physical Description:Online Resource
ISSN:1465-3877
DOI:10.1080/03057240.2025.2453687